Borough of Irwin, PA Sewer Rental Rates

[Amended 3-23-1970 by Ord. No. 9-1970; 3-11-1974 by Ord. No. 1-1974; 5-28-1980 by Ord. No. 692; 8-9-1982 by Ord. No. 708; 1-18-1990 by Ord. No. 771; 7-7-1993 by Ord. No. 791; 12-10-1997 by Ord. No. 818; 12-13-2000 by Ord. No. 835; 2-13-2002 by Ord. No. 843; 12-10-2003 by Ord. No. 857]

There is hereby established and imposed a sewer charge as recommended by the Borough Council consulting engineers, payable as hereinafter set forth, as follows:

(1)

Monthly charge and penalty rate. All bills for sewage service, exclusive of sewage treatment, shall be calculated at a rate to be set by Council, from time to time, by way of resolution and maintained and posted as part of the Borough of Irwin's fee schedule.

[Amended 1-3-2006 by Ord. No. 870; 2-14-2007 by Ord. No. 879; 12-12-2007 by Ord. No. 883; 12-9-2009 by Ord. No. 891; 12-8-2010 by Ord. No. 899; 12-12-2012 by Ord. No. 910; 12-10-2014 by Ord. No. 930; 12-13-2017 by Ord. No. 962; 12-19-2019 by Ord. No. 987; 6-10-2020 by Ord. No. 4-2020]

(2)

An equivalent dwelling unit (EDU) shall mean one of the following, which shall have separate kitchen facilities and/or bathroom facilities and/or commode and/or lavatory and/or shower and/or laundry facilities and/or such other water-using facilities normally discharged into the sewage disposal system:

(a)

One single house.

(b)

Each house of multiple or row of houses.

(c)

Each apartment in an apartment complex.

(d)

Each trailer (house or travel).

(e)

Each 50,000 gallons or less of water used per year in the case of motels, hotels and/or all other customers having a single water meter.

(f)

Each 50,000 gallons or less of water used per year in the case of commercial, industrial and/or similar sewage service customer accounts.

(3)

With respect to Subsection A(2)(e) and (f), all such customers shall pay the equivalent of one EDU for the first 50,000 gallons or less of water used per year, and in the event of usage in excess of 50,000 gallons, shall pay, in addition to the charge for the first EDU, an amount equal to the mathematical fraction to be determined by assigning the gallons in excess of 50,000 as the numerator and 50,000 as the denominator, which said fraction shall be multiplied times the rate per EDU. Water usage will be determined from usage data available from the Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County.

Bill for sewer service. Bills for said sewer service shall be rendered in a manner and in a form to be prescribed by the Borough. All bills for sewer service shall be rendered to the record property owner of the premises to which the sewer service is furnished, and such record property owner shall in all cases be liable for payment of such bills.

Rules and regulations. The Borough Council shall have charge and management of the sewer system and shall issue such rules and regulations governing the use, operation and maintenance of said sewer system as it shall deem necessary.

Sewer system fund. The Borough shall collect and receive all sewer rates and charges prescribed by this article. All such money shall be deposited to the credit of a special fund, to be designated the "Sewer System Fund," pursuant to the terms of the aforesaid agreement of lease, which shall be a separate and distinct fund of the Borough of Irwin.

Sewer rental payment. All bills for sewer rentals and charges shall be due when rendered and shall be subject to a penalty of 10% per annum of the gross amount of the bill if the bill is not paid by the due date of the bill. The record property owner requesting service will be billed quarterly for sewer service rental or charge and, where applicable, from the usage data available from the Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County.

(1)

Sewer service to any property may be discontinued after five days' notice or failure of the record property owner or user to pay the bill for such services within 30 days of the due date thereof.

(2)

Registration of water on two or more meters at one premises, and used by one consumer, may be combined and billed to said user as though registered on one meter, if the Borough Council so elects.

(3)

In the event any person, firm or corporation discharging sanitary sewage, industrial waste, water or other liquids into the Borough's public sanitary sewage system, either directly or indirectly, obtains part or all of the water used by him from other sources than the Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County, such user of other water shall, at no expense to the Borough, install and maintain water meters satisfactory to the Borough Council for measuring all water usage other than that obtained from the Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County, and the quantity of water used to determine the sewage service charge (where applicable) as above set forth shall be the sum of quantity measured by all such meters plus the quantity of water obtained from the Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County.

(4)

In the event it be established to the satisfaction of the Borough Council that a portion of the water measured by the above-named water meter or meters does not and cannot enter the public sanitary sewage system, and in the event the total water used by said person, firm or corporation exceeds 100,000 gallons per quarter, then the Borough Council may determine, in such manner and by such method as it may deem practical, the percentage of the metered water entering the sanitary system, or the Borough Council may require or permit installation of additional meters in such a manner as to determine either the quantity of water excluded from the sewage system or the quantity of water, sewage or industrial waste actually entering the sewage system exclusive of stormwater runoff. The sewage service charge shall be based upon the quantity of water eliminated, measured or computed by the Borough Council to be actually entering the sewage system, exclusive of stormwater runoff, subject to the charge provisions as set up hereinabove.

(5)

Persons, industries or corporations requesting consideration for reduction in the sewage system charge because of water not entering the public sanitary sewage system shall make written application to the Borough Council for such consideration, giving the name of the firm, industry or business, address, Borough account number and supporting data fully describing other sources of water, if any, as well as disposition of water alleged not to be entering the sewage system. The application shall be accompanied by a sketch to approximate scale showing the plan of the property, water distribution system, sewer layout, existing meters and proposed meters in the scheme to determine the quantity of flow entering or not entering the sewage system. The cost of furnishing, installing and maintaining any meters other than those utilized to measure water purchased from the Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County shall be borne by the applicant. The type, size, location, arrangement and maintenance of such meters shall be subject to the approval of Borough Council.

(6)

Nothing in the foregoing subsection shall preclude the right of the Borough Council entering into contracts with neighboring municipalities for the treatment of their sewage under a schedule of charges differing from those above set forth.

(7)

Surcharges.

(a)

The Borough reserves the right to impose such surcharges as it deems necessary for the discharge to the sanitary sewage system of waste having a strength in excess of the following and/or as set forth under ordinances:

	pH — 5.50 to 9.00
	BOD — 250 parts per million
	Suspended solids — 250 parts per million

(b)

The amount, methods of sampling and determination of surcharge, and related characteristics of such surcharge, shall be set by Borough Council by amendment to this article.

(8)

The authorized representative shall make and enforce such rules and regulations subject to approval of the Borough Council for the safe, economical and efficient management, control and protection of the Borough's public sewage system, for the construction and use of all other connections thereto, and for the regulation, collection, rebating and refunding of such sewage system charges as may be needed or necessary from time to time.